Draft device.



I. u. MCNETLL E L. R. BROWN.

DRAFT DEVICE. ED AUG-20,1915. RENEWED JAN.IO,191B. 1,261,252. Patented Apr. 2,1918.

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APPLICATION Er-L D. McNElLL & L. R. BROWN. DRAFT DEVlCE.

APPLICATION mix) Aue.20. i915. RENEWED IAN. x0. 191s.

Patented Apr. 2,1918.

J. 0. McNElLL & L. R. BROWN. v

DRAFT DEVICE. APPLICATION FILED AUG-20, 1-915- REI H-IWED JAN. 10, 19 18 1,261,252. I tented Apr. 2,1918..-

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JOEE I). MOIIEILL, OF CORNING, AND LYMAN 3. BROWN, OF LAWRENCE, KANSAS.

DRAFT nnvron.

Specification of Letters ZPatent.

Patented Apr. 2, 1918'.

Application filed August 20, 1915, Serial No. 46,547. Renewed January 10, 1918; Serial No. 211,820.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 'we, JOHN D. MONFILL and LYMAN R. Brown, citizens of the United States, residing at Corning, county of Ne- 6 maha and State of Kansas, and Lawrence,

in the county of Douglas and State of Kansas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Draft Devices, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to draft devices such as are employed in connection with plows, listers, planters and other agricultural implements and to which are .desired to be connected two or more draft animals.

In ordinary constructions of draft devices of this class in the event that the plowblade'or blades or some other portion of the implement comes in contact with a stump or some other obstruction in the field, the sudden strain imposed upon the harness traces is liable to result in the traces being broken or in breakage of-some element, of the draft device as result of which the draft animals are liable to become frightened resulting frequently in serious accidents and in any event rendering necessary the expenditure. of money for repairs either to the harness or to the draft device to say nothing of the time which is lost while such repairs are bein made.

There ore, it is the primary aim of the present invention to provide a draft device of this class ,of-such construction that no injury to the harness or to any portion of value, will be occasioned in the event obstructions are met in the field, and incidentally the draft device embodying the present invention reduces to a minimum the likelihood of accidents which might be occasioned by -'the draft animalsbecoming frightened and running away.

The invention also aims to so construct the device that in the event an obstruction is met in the field'the draft animals will, after the obstruction has been met with, be permitted to travel forwardly a suificient distance to enable the driver to properly "control them and bring them to a standstill before such strain can be imposed upon the harness or the draft device as would be likely to result in damage.

T A further'object of the invention is to provide a construction of draft device which will permit of the use of a lighter plow or lister or other implement ormachine to ac:

the device itself, having any appreciable.

complish the same results as by the use of a comparatively heavyplow or other implement or machine, thereby permitting of one orglnore of the draft animals to be dispensed W1 may find embodiment in various types of draft devices and, therefore, only a .few of these embodiments are illustrated in the accompanylng drawings:

In the drawings: Figure 1'. is a plan view invention thereto.

Fig. 2 is a verticalsectional view on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a similar View on the 1s. 3-3' of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4. is a perspective view of a portion of the draft device. y

. Fig. 5 is a plan view illustrating the embodiment of the invention in a five horse equalizer.

Fig. 6 is a similar view illustrating the invention embodied in a six horse equalizer. Fig. 7 1s a slmilar View 1llustrat1ng a three horse equalizer. y

. Fig. 8 is a similar view illustrating another form of three horse equalizer.

Fig. 9 is a similar .ivi'ew illustrating the embodiment of the invention in' a two horse.

equalizer.

That portion of the draft device in which the present invention resides is substantially the same in all of the embodiments of the invention illustrated in the drawings, the

arrangement of the parts of the draft device as a whole, merely, differing in the several forms illustrated. Referring particularly to Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive, the numeral 1 indicates the beam or tongue of-a plow or other agricultural implement and 2 the The principles of'the present invention,

of afour horse I equalizer lllustrating the application of the,

draft beam of the device which is connected with the "said beam or tongue 1 by the usual clevis and link connection-indicated at 3.

' *That portion of the device constituting the draft beam 2 and adjacent their outer ends each bar extends between spaced ears 6 of a clip 7 which is bolted or otherwise secured as at 8 to the draft beam 2 near the corresponding outer end thereof. The cars 6 are provided with vertically alined openings 9 and the bar which passes between the ears is provided with an opening 10 designed to register with the openings 9 as shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings. A break pin 11 is fitted through the openings 9 and 10 in the manner shown in said Fig. 2 and this pin is of some suitable wood such for example as oak or hickory. The purpose of .this break pin will presently be described.

Pivoted as at 12 to the outer end of each bar is a clip 13 which supports a doubletree 14: provided at each end with a swingle-tree. 15. While the break pin 11 is of wood, as stated above, it is of sufficient strength to withstand ordinary strain imposed upon the draft device as a whole under ordinary conditions. When, however, an obstruction is met with in the field as for example a stump, and the blade or blades of the implement. or some other portion of the implement or machine to which the draft device is connected, comes in contact with the obstruction, the break pin 11 will be fractured or broken owing tothe additional and severe strain imposed upon it and the draft bar 4.- or both bars in the event that both break pins become fractured, is permitted to swing forwardly upon the eye bolt 5 as a pivot thereby allowing the draft animals connected with that end of the'draft device, to move forwardly without further strainbeing imposed upon them and upon the harness as well as upon the draft device itself. When this occurs sufieient time is 'ven the driver to control the draft anima s and bring them to a standstill before the harness and other portions of the vice are again subjected to strain. Thus mjur to theharness or to the draft device itse f is effectually prevented and, furthermore, inasmuch as the draft bar 4 seryes to support the double-tree or other draft element 14 which is connected. to it, the said draft element is prevented from falling against the rear legs of the draft animals as would ordinarily be the case and the corn sequence of a runaway are avoided.

Parts illustrated in Fig. 5 corresponding to parts shown in Figs. 1 to rinclusive are indicated by corresponding reference numerals and the arrangement of parts is substantially the same except that the doublethree 14 is replaced at one side of the draft device by a draft beam 16 having swiveled thereon trees 17 to the remote ends of which are connected mingle-trees l8 and to the adjacent ends of which are connected links 1.) pi vol'all y connected at heir forward ends .2 lo a mingle-tree 20 located between the east AVAILABLE cor trees 18. As before stated, this figure illustrates the embodiment of the invention in a five horse equalizer.

In Fig. 6, in which the invention is illustrated as embodied in asix horse equalizer, the arrangement'is substantially the same as shown in Fig. 5 except that the parts nected to it at one end a swing1e-tree 23,

the arrangement at the other end of the beam being substantially the same as that at either end of the beam 2 shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings.

In Fig. 8 of the drawings'the numeral 24:

indicates a draft beam corresponding to the beam 2 and swiveled as at 25 at each end of this beam is a draft bar 26 to the adjacent ends of which bars are connected by means oflinks .27, the ends of draft links 28 supporting a swin le-tree 29.. To the outer end of each dra t bar 26 there is connected a link 30 and this link is connected at its forward ends by means of one of the break pins 11, to a draft bar-.31, correspondin to the draft bar 4 in the previously descrl ed forms of the invention. To the outer end of each draft bar 31 there is-connected a swingle-tree 32.

The arrangement shown in Fig. 9 of the drawings is substantially the same as that illustrated in Fig. 1 except that the draft bar corresponding to the bar 4 and indicated by thenumeral 33 is formed with a series of openings 34: through which may be interchangeably fitted a pivot bolt 35 at the rear end of the link 36, a swingle-tree 37 being poigiected at the forward end of the said It will be understood further from the I out invention, it is possible to make use of a lighter plow or lister or other implement or machine and to eliminate one or more of the draft animals.

It will be understood, of course,.that the device embodying the present invention may be employed upon plows and listers drawn by steam or other motor .power as well asimplements drawn by draft animals.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is:

In a draft device of the class described,

a draft beam, a draft bar pivotally connected at one end to the forward side of the beam and extending in the direction of the end of the 'beam, a member secured to the 5 beam and provided with spaced forwardly projecting ears formed with vertically alined openings, the draft bar extending between the said ears' and being provided with an opening registerin% with the first-mentioned openings, a frangi 1e pin fitted 1n the open- 10 ings, and a draft element connected to the said draft bar.

In testimony whereof we afiix our signatures.

JOHN D. McNEILL. [1 s.] LYMAN R. BROWN. [11.8.] 

